A new study, published online ahead of publication in Child Language Teaching and Therapy, suggests that explicit instruction targeting phoneme blending may improve phoneme blending and word reading skills for some children with Down syndrome.

The ability to combine distinct phonemes to make a word (for example, ch-a-t = chat) is important
for learning to read, yet can be a particular challenge for many children with Down syndrome.[1] Teaching
approaches that help children with Down syndrome to develop their phoneme blending skills might also help the development
of reading skills.

To explore this idea, researchers at DSE and the University of York, UK (some of
whom are now at University College London and at the University of Oxford) conducted an exploratory pilot of an intervention designed to explicitly teach phoneme blending
skills. The results of this study are reported in a paper recently published online ahead of publication in Child Language
Teaching and Therapy.[2] The study was conducted in conjunction with a larger study funded by the UK Big Lottery Fund, and supported by additional funding from the Nuffield Foundation and Down Syndrome Education International.

The researchers designed an intervention to support the development of phoneme blending skills. The teaching program
was delivered by Teaching Assistants working with 10 children with Down syndrome in mainstream schools in England who had
previously participated in a larger, controlled trial of a comprehensive reading and language intervention. The children’s
progress on a range of phonological and reading measures was monitored during a period prior to receiving the intervention
to provide a comparison for progress observed while receiving the intervention.

The intervention was delivered in 30 daily sessions lasting 10 to 15 minutes (over 6 weeks). Each session comprised of
six activities introducing 2 or 3 new letter sounds every second day: visual blending with pictures, visual blending, oral
blending with pictures, oral blending, nonword reading and sentence reading. Sessions progressed
through the sequence of phonemes outlined in Letters and Sounds.[3] The intervention was scripted and
Teaching Assistants were provided with the necessary resources, together with a manual and DVD-based training, including
a demonstration of each of the teaching activities. The intervention was delivered alongside the book reading and sight
word learning activities contained within the comprehensive reading and language intervention they were using with the children.[4,5]

The researchers found that during the intervention period, the children, on average, made more progress on measures of single word
reading and phoneme blending than they had done during the comparison period. Teaching Assistants
reported that the intervention was easy to implement and enjoyable and had benefits for the children’s development.

This was an exploratory study involving 10 children with Down syndrome and not including a randomised control group. It offers preliminary evidence that some children with Down syndrome can learn to blend phonemes in words
following targeted instruction over a short period of time, and that this may help some children improve their word reading skills. The gains in
word reading achieved by individual children varied widely and future research will be needed to further evaluate whether
we can identify the children for whom the intervention may be most useful. A larger study, with a randomised control group, is also necessary to confirm these findings.

Although this study should be interpreted with caution, it is encouraging to see some children benefiting and teachers may wish to consider how they teach phoneme blending
to children with Down syndrome - particularly those struggling with blending.

DSE is considering how it might make the evaluated blending intervention available and is continuing
research in this area.

Supporting educational research

Down Syndrome Education International and Down Syndrome Education
USA support developmental and educational research that improves outcomes for many thousands of children with
Down syndrome around the world today. DSE has a successful 30 year track record of delivering improvements in early
intervention and education for young people with Down syndrome through original scientific research and practical,
evidence-based publications, training and consulting services. Our teaching resources, guidance and information
services help over 150,000 people in over 160 countries each year.

Educational research is informing better teaching approaches
that are helping young people with Down syndrome to achieve more than ever before. Help us to
ensure a brighter future for all children with Down syndrome by supporting our work today.